Memories Last Forever, So How Could I Just Forget?
by angelcreature13
Summary: Mariana's life is less than normal, and after everything that's happened, she feels alone. What happens when she is home alone and reminisces about someone in her life she forgot all about? Title from The Cadillac Song by Ariana Grande. 1st Fosters story. Give feedback!


It was a normal Saturday morning in the Foster family. Lena was in the kitchen making breakfast, Stef was taking a shower, Mariana and Callie were brushing their teeth, Brandon was listening to music (pre-morning ritual), while Jude and AJ were still sleeping.

Stef barged into their room after leaving the shower and yelled, "Okay! Time to get up! We have a lot to do today!" The two grumbled under the cover, but eventually got out of bed. Jude left the room first, as AJ wanted the room to himself.

Mariana and Callie finally left the bathroom, allowing Brandon and Jude to enter next. Callie got dressed, as she had guitar lessons, while Mariana changed into some comfortable clothes.

AJ was heading out to spend some quality time with Mike, and get to know his _soon-to-be_ foster father. Brandon had practice for his Idyllwild Music Program performance at Carnegie Hall.

Jude was invited to Connor's house for some "alone time", so to speak, which was pretty cute, and Stef and Lena both decided to go into work for some overtime at their jobs. This meant Mariana would be home alone.

Mariana had nothing to to do, since there wasn't any dance practice, and her teammates all had their separate plans with family and friends. Not to mention she recently broke up with Matt, whom she loves, after cheating on him with Wyatt.

"You sure you'll be okay at home by yourself?" Lena asked her before she left.

Mariana wanted to say no, as she felt she had no one there for her and didn't want to be alone. But she sacrificed her unhappiness for the sake of her moms, who she knew needed the hours to make a little extra money.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I'll call if anything."

"Ok, see ya luv!" Stef said while planting a kiss on her cheek. Lena did the same and they left the house with Jude, whom they dropped at Connor's house. Mariana shot them a fake smile before they left the house. Soon, Mike came to get AJ, and Brandon and Callie left for their lessons. Mariana was alone in the house.

She spent a little of her time on her laptop, some making herself something to eat, and some watching TV.

She then began listening to music. For some reason, her playlist would play songs about love or losing someone important. The song _Anytime_ by Brian McKnight in particular made her tear up.

After a while, she just got bored, and began looking at pictures in her photo album.

She smiled at all the memories she had so far; being adopted by Stef and Lena, her adventures with her best friend Lexi, her Quinceñera, even some with Matt.

She then reached pictures of her and Zac, _her first love_.

She smiled, remembering the day they took them.

* * *

"Mariana, c'mon! You've taken enough!" Zac was trying his best to stop his girlfriend from taking pictures of him, seeing as she already had over twenty on her camera roll. Nevertheless, he couldn't keep a smile off his face.

"But you look so cute!" Mariana reasoned, trying to remove his hands from his face.

When she succeeded, he smirked at her. "What's in it for me?"

"I can think of something..." she said before placing her lips against his. She felt him smile into the kiss, and her cheeks flamed when his left hand began caressing it. It was moments like this Mariana felt happiest.

As he pulled away, her eyes were glossy, and he surrendered. "Alright, _just_ a few more." Mariana grinned and pulled out her digital camera once again.

"Smile!" He complied, smiling wide. He then began doing different poses and faces, which in turn just made her laugh uncontrollably. He joined her, since he loved seeing her flash of white teeth and knowing he was the cause of it.

"These are definitely going in my album!" she announced.

"I still can't understand why you would want to keep all these ridiculous pictures of me."

She looked at him, a bit surprised, then giggled. "I know you may look ridiculous in these, but" she put her hands in his, "You're _my_ ridiculous."

He gave her a flash of white teeth before grabbing her waist and pulling her in for another kiss, this one longer and more passionate than the previous one. The moment was cut short when they realized they weren't alone. They broke away and saw kids surrounding them, some making faces while others were laughing. The couple had forgotten they were in a public park.

Zac couldn't blame the kids for giggling. "Yeah, haha very funny."

He turned to face Mariana. "Let's get out of here." He whisked his girlfriend away from the park and to a pizzeria. Once they went in, Zac insisted she sit down, as he wanted to order for both of them.

Mariana couldn't help but gawk at him. Zac wasn't what she _wanted_ in a boyfriend, but he was definitely everything she **needed**. He was smart, funny, _caring_ , honest, not to mention cute, in a nerdy kind of way.

Sure he wasn't the captain of the football team or didn't have a leather jacket, but she liked him for him. Although, she felt her heart telling her it was more than that.

"Okay, food should be here in a few minutes." he said, snapping her out of her thoughts and sitting across from her. She smiled at him as he held her hand from across the table.

In a few minutes their food came. Mariana was more than happy with what he ordered her.

"You ordered my favorite pizza?" she said, internally melting at his gesture.

"Yep! One slice of margarita three cheese pizza with spinach and pineapple." he recited. Mariana smiled brightly at him before staring, mesmerized. He was so wonderful to her, she thought it had to be to good to be true.

"Hey," he said, snapping his fingers, which made her come back to reality, "It's getting cold; let's eat." She nodded and took a bite. They spent about a half hour eating and conversing with each other. It was very clear that they enjoyed each other's company.

...

After their lunch date, they walked back to her house, hand in hand. However, this walk was for the most part silent. The day was coming to a close, and neither of them wanted it to, as they knew tomorrow would be a sad one.

This was Zac's last day before he moved in with his dad, and he wanted to spend it with the girl he cared the most about.

"Please say something." he begged her.

She look at him for the first time since they left the restaurant. "I'm not sure what you expect me to say." she replied, her voice cracking.

He turned to face her, knowing that this is hurting her. "Mariana, I hate this as much as you do. Maybe I should've just stayed with my mom-"

Mariana looked at her boyfriend in complete shock. "Absolutely not! What is she forgets who you are again, and hurts you? You did the right thing, even though it means we won't be able to be together."

Zac wiped away the two tears that fell down each of Mariana's eyes; she knew it was impossible to hold it in any longer. She accepted it, and it hurt. A lot.

"I refuse to say that this is goodbye." Zac told her, on the verge on tears himself. "Mariana, I realize we may meet other people. But no mater what, promise we will always remember each other."

She sniffed. " _I promise_." she said in a whisper.

He brushed a lock of her hair out of her face, and planted a short kiss on her lips. He didn't realized how much he'd miss the contact until he pulled away.

They continued to walk to her house, and finally made it to the front door. The stopped and face each other.

" **I love you**." she blurted. This isn't the way Mariana wanted to tell him, but since he's leaving, she figured she might as well let him know before he goes.

He smiled a sad smile. "I love you too." Mariana brought him in for a hug, with her head on his chest. She tilted her head up to kiss him chastely one more time.

"This isn't goodbye." he told her, resting his head on top of hers. "I will see you again; you'll always be in my heart."

She again lifted her head up, their lips being centimeters apart. "Your my first love Zac; I'll **never** forget you." she promised, in between sniffles and tears.

They stood there, holding each other in the embrace for a few minutes, before letting go, and Mariana entering her house.

* * *

It was at this moment Mariana realized that she had broken her promise. She had forgotten about Zac. She began crying after her flashback ended, upset that she didn't keep her end of the deal.

She soon wiped away her tears, realizing it wouldn't help. She took a picture of them from her photo album and placed it on the bulletin board above her computer desk. This way, she would never forget him again.

She felt a pang in her heart, realizing how much she actually missed him. His laugh, his smile, their kisses, his warm hands...

She couldn't even call him because his dad changed his number, and so did she.

But Mariana didn't let it stress her out. She knew Zac was right; they'll see each other again, and knowing this made her heart whole again.

"Hey, how was your day?" She turned around to see Lena at the door.

"It was okay, nothing exciting though."

Lena sat on the bed. "Have you been crying?" she asked, brushing her cheeks.

Mariana sniffed. "A little, but I'm okay; I just, really miss someone."

"Well, they say if you love someone, let them go. I know how hard that is, but the good thing is you'll always remember them, and if they do come back, it's meant to be." She kissed Mariana on the cheek before leaving Mariana alone to think about what she said.

She knew life never really went the way she wanted it, but she desperately hoped that _he_ would step back into her life soon.

* * *

 **A/N: hey guys! I'm new to Fosters Fanfiction. I love the show, and I've been watching since Season 1. This is my first, I plan to do more fics for this show. Please favorite it and/or review if you liked it! I really appreciate it! :)**

 **(For my followers, I'm back after a few months of being inactive. However, due to school, I still may be inactive, so bare with me. You will see more stories from me.)**


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